Card game providing a customizable, randomizable gameboard

ABSTRACT

This invention provides a customizable gameboard populated by playing cards. The cards are placed face down in the gameboard spaces and players take turns revealing cards while attempting to reach a goal as defined by the cards and gameboard. The game accommodates any number of players and allows for solitaire play. Most of the cards represent obstacles to reaching the goal of the game and players may choose to work individually or in teams and cooperatively or competitively to reach that goal. Ideally, the obstacles and goal may represent a story in which each player controls an adventuring character. As each player earns and manages resources which enable them to better overcome obstacles, their characters will develop to become more effective. As these characters develop, players may retain their resources from one game and use them in subsequent games. Dice are used to produce random outcomes when facing obstacles.

RELATED CROSS-REFERENCE

[0001] Application Ser. No.: 60/296,842 Filing Date: Jun. 11, 2001 Name of Applicant: Dane F. Fuller Title: Quest Cards Game

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] This invention provides a method of playing a card game which is wholly unique from the prior art. Most all prior art is based on a standard 52 card deck. Often the deck is modified by removing cards or adding cards from additional decks to provide a card game that relates to a classic parlor game, and which can be played for sport, gambling, or education. An example of such prior art is U.S. Pat. No. 5,613,682 granted to G. Otuzbiryan which describes a card game that relates to the rules of blackjack.

[0003] The prior art allows for differing manners by which cards combine to provide a winning hand, but the fundamental elements of a draw deck and hand dealt to each player, exist in almost all prior art. This invention diverges greatly from the fundamental elements of a deck and hand.

[0004] The prior art does not provide for the flexibility of solitaire play while also allowing individuals or teams to work cooperatively or competitively toward the goal of the game. Furthermore, the prior art does not allow for resources a player earns during play of one game to be retained for play of subsequent games.

[0005] Note that prior art containing individually designed cards, not based on a standard 52 card deck, is less common in the prior art because such games derive their method of play from the unique card design of which copyright protection is preferred over a patent.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0006] This invention discloses a method of playing a card game which has an advantage over prior art because

[0007] (a) it provides for cards to create a customizable, randomized, modular gameboard;

[0008] (b) the element of chance, provided by the random placement of cards, is enhanced by the use of a random number generation device, such as dice;

[0009] (c) it provides for any number of players to participate cooperatively or competitively, individually or in teams, toward reaching the goal of the game;

[0010] (d) it provides for resources that a player obtains during the game to be retained for use in subsequent games; and

[0011] (e) it is enhanced by, though independent of, card design, being inclusive of variants which can even be played with a standard 52 card deck.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE BEST MODE OF THE INVENTION

[0012] The best mode of the invention constitutes players attempting to collect victory point cards from a gameboard made of 25 cards placed face down in a 5×5 square of game spaces. The players begin the game by placing their tokens outside of the 5×5 square and take turns moving to and from adjacent game spaces by revealing the card which occupies the space to which they are attempting to move their token. The revealed card will either grant a victory point toward reaching the goal of the game or serve as an obstacle to that goal and hinder access to other adjacent game spaces until removed.

[0013] If a player reveals an obstacle, they must use their limited resources to retreat from, bypass, or defeat the obstacle, as determined by a series of dice rolls using two six-sided dice. If an obstacle is defeated, it is removed from the gameboard with the added bonus of possibly obtaining new resources to aid in continuing the game.

[0014] An interesting feature of this invention is it's ability to incorporate popular themes and story lines. The victory points and obstacles may contain pictures or text which can build the theme or story line. Furthermore, each player may select a theme-based character with associated resources which assist the player in overcoming obstacles. Possible themes include, but are not limited to, fantasy adventure, science fiction, mystery, and armed conflict.

[0015] A player's resources are obtained through selection of two unique skills (associated with their character) and through items obtained during game play. These skills and items are annotated on cards that the player keeps displayed before them during the entire game. Six items may be retained by any player, only two of which are allowed to benefit the player on a given turn; however, a player's skills are in effect at all times. These resources add bonuses or create effects which better enable a player to progress through the game, usually by obtaining a higher outcome on their dice rolls. In the best mode of the game, a higher roll is always better than a lower roll.

[0016] A unique feature of the invention is that the resources can become more effective as the difficulty of subsequent games increases. Furthermore, a player may retain the resources obtained during a game and use them in a subsequent game.

[0017] Another interesting feature of the invention is that a player may be knocked out of play and their character eliminated from the current game and banned from all future games. A player is knocked out of the game by allowing their health points to fall to zero or less. Players can lose health points by failing a roll versus an obstacle, and they may regain lost health points by a lucky dice roll or by expending resources.

[0018] The description provided above only addresses the preferred embodiment of the game. Variations include, but are not limited to:

[0019] (a) a range of low rolls are good under certain circumstances or a range of high rolls is bad;

[0020] (b) other devices besides cards are used to keep track of resources;

[0021] (c) the number of skills and items are limited to different values than two and six, respectively;

[0022] (d) use of any random outcome device rather than two six-sided dice;

[0023] (e) gameboard configurations other than a 5×5 square, to include stacking of cards;

[0024] (f) different starting locations based on variation of the gameboard configuration;

[0025] (g) variations of goal of game to include reaching a certain position on the gameboard versus collecting victory points;

[0026] (h) the option of players moving on the gameboard as a team and pooling their resources together to survive obstacles; and

[0027] (i) adding additional cards to form a draw deck and a player's hand to increase player and gameboard interaction.

[0028] The limits of the invention are enumerated in the attached claims. 

I claim:
 1. A method of playing a card game for one or more players, comprising: (a) customizable sets of individually designed playing cards of which some cards may represent events constituting steps in reaching the goal of the game and also of which most cards represent obstacles to obtaining said goal; (b) a customizable gameboard consisting of said playing cards arranged face down, concealing indices, in a pattern where a card or a stack of cards may fill a game space of said gameboard; (c) a token or other device to track which game space a player occupies on said gameboard; (d) a device producing random numbers which provides outcomes for determining if a player has overcome an obstacle represented by said playing cards; and (e) cards or other devices used to track each player's resources effecting said outcomes and each player's ability to obtain said goal.
 2. A method of claim 1, wherein the playing cards further provide: (a) indices representing the relative difficulty of overcoming said obstacle, or the manner in which the card aids a player in reaching said goal; and (b) a randomization of the gameboard, by shuffling said cards.
 3. A method of claim 1, wherein the rules further provide: (a) for solitaire play; (b) cooperative or competitive and individual or team play as the players work toward obtaining the said goal; (c) a customizable said goal based on card design; (d) a variant of the game where the inclusion of a draw deck and hand for each player provides more card interaction between players and the gameboard; and (e) for resources a player earns during play of one game to be retained and used in subsequent play of additional games. 